Just 2 Seconds (13 page)

Surrendering to the reality of what is happening means we accept the present moment, and that is where our resources and solutions and brilliance are waiting for us: in the present moment. Until this surrender happens you really aren't
there
at all, yet once the surrender occurs and you land in the present moment, you can be propelled far ahead of unworthy adversaries. Odds are that a well-trained protector will know this territory far better than the attacker -- after all, the well-trained protector has done this before, has been here before. It's here in the present moment that protectors get tactical inspirations, and see options they might not otherwise see. As with athletes in what might appear to be impossible situations, these options do not come from thinking; they come from being. Indeed, the so-called "tactical mindset" is useless once things go awry, because any mindset is itself out of the moment.

It's true that initially, a committed attacker is likely to be more present in the moment than the protector. That's because the protector might first deny, or think, or get angry, or judge the attacker and the situation as bad, when in fact, we could thank the bastard for waking us up out of thought, out of our plans and ideas -- and bringing us back to the moment where we can resume our role as predator.

Even just to observe, "Ah, an attack," is to stop planning, wanting, wishing, and all the other ing's that are so inferior to be-ing.

Wanting -- the attacker wants the successful assassination, the protector wants to prevail -- the wanting itself actually prevents the outcomes we want. The surrender, the acceptance, that's where the action is, and where the options are revealed, where we get to be part of what's happening.

If you always retain the posture of predator, then as you move toward an attacker, you'll know you are not the one at risk. He is. He is the prey, you are the predator. An attack might produce stress for the protector, of course, however to the degree you perceive yourself as predator rather than prey, you'll get physiological benefits without the release of stress hormones that cause deterioration of combat skills. A big difference, as Siddle explains: "The predator, unlike the prey, is smart, precise, and deliberate."

Among the various predators in Nature, the best analogy for protective work is offered by Dave Grossman in
On Combat,
when he describes the sheepdog and the sheep. The sheepdog is a predator dedicated to protecting his flock from any other predators. Grossman explains that nothing but a predator can hunt a predator: "Sending a sheep after a predator is merely home delivery," he says.

The predator role best matches the outcome you want -- and best summons the resources you'll need to reach that outcome.

Do It Now

Well-trained protectors bring Zen to the art of protection when they see suspects through direct intuitive insight, unmediated by the Mind. Thus, ZAP is not a state of mind, it is a state of
no
mind.

As learned from the TAD exercise discussed in
Chapter 2
, a protector's nearness to someone who intends to attack is a key element in determining outcome. You want to be close. This means you don't wait for anything more than your intuition; your suspicion about someone is enough to compel action. If you can move closer to a suspect now,
do it now.
Move forward, fast forward into the Now. Reassessing is not an action.

In the Now, you can be in position (and in time) to act on pre-incident indicators, rather than merely waiting for an attacker's Moment of Commitment. What, after all, makes someone an attacker? An attack. But if you wait for an attack, you will likely have waited too long. Though many people think the mission is to wait for an attack and then respond, the job is not called "Waiter" -- it is called "Protector." The job is to proactively Protect all the time, literally to protect
all the time
that you'd need in order to respond. You do this by keeping the distances between yourself and your emergency destinations as short as possible, and by having no separation between yourself and the Now.

Appearances Matter

When you are fully present in body and mind, attentive but not anxious, and well grounded, everyone who observes you will sense your readiness, including the most important observer of all: the one who came here intending to attack. There will be a current that can actually be felt by people in your environment, and you will be current -- in the most basic meaning of the word:
belonging to the present time.

Currency shows in a great protective team, and that true readiness is the ultimate deterrent. There is a vitality in the present moment that other moments just don't have -- and an attacker can sense when you are fully in the moment. Let him feel that you are not only present with him, but pre-sent ahead of him.

Effective protectors radiate confidence, and people who consider attack can sense that confidence. They can also sense attentiveness, displayed by how a protector's eyes move (or don't move), by body language, and by positioning. They can even read the rate of a protector's respiration. How you look -- literally
how
you look at people -- can enhance deterrence.

When you combine readiness with ideal positioning, then you are actively protecting, not just waiting -- and if that man you've just moved closer to has attack on his mind, you can change his mind using your attitude alone.

Remember, he is already full of reasons to hesitate. Give him one more reason: Your readiness. Make him think, for thinking stalls acting and throws him out of the Now. Or make him rush, for rushing impedes accuracy, and throws him off balance.

Protector attributes that display currency and readiness:

• Appears interested, involved, engaged
  
• Doesn't have unnecessary talk with anyone, including other protectors
  
• Not fussing with clothes, wires, earphone, or other equipment
  
• Hands are free and at the ready
  
• Coat is unbuttoned for easy access to equipment
  
• Makes eye contact with anyone and everyone in the protectee's immediate environment
  
• Shows suspiciousness: Let suspects feel you are "on to them" even if you are not
  
• Enforces the rules, immediately intercepts anyone entering spaces that are established as off limits, even when there's no apparent danger
  
• Physically fit and exuding an air of confidence
  
• Assumes a strong position and a balanced stance
  

Throughout his diary, Arthur Bremer
⁺
, who shot Presidential candidate George Wallace, teaches us the value of appearances. He relates that one crew of protectors is less effective than another because they have "no suspicions" (sic), and he describes some protectors as "bored gargoyles." He also writes about protectors whose appearances and positioning did impress him (and deter him), referring to a "smart agent" whose effective actions he called "a nice trick." Ultimately, he blames "beefed up security" for his failure to kill his target.

The Compendium cases show all too clearly that having protectors near attackers does not automatically deter or prevent attacks. Among many others, there's
Israeli Prime Minister Rabin (#251)
,
Mexican Presidential Candidate Colosio (#229)
,
Rajiv Gandhi, (#177)
, all fatally wounded while protectors were directly next to the assailants, and in at least one case, actually
touching the assailant at the instant of the attack (
President William McKinley #1394
).

Thankfully, there are many more cases (perhaps thousands) where attacks were deterred by the conspicuous currency of protectors -- by the appearances that matter. And currency can do more than just deter attacks; it can actually prevent an attack -- in the truest definition of the word prevent: depriving the person of the "power or hope of succeeding."

An Alternative Universe

Some sects of Tibetan Buddhists believe that merely by being intently focused on the Now, and not doing anything physical, they can influence and even change future events. The idea that intention alone can change the physical world might at first seem farfetched, yet you see it happen in protective work all the time: If someone considering an attack senses that you are fully present (pre-sent), even if you do nothing more, your currency can influence and change his actions.

When you think of all the ways that attacks could resolve themselves, you can see that many outcomes do exist in a sort of alternative universe. That phrase strikes many people as fantasy or science fiction, yet there's a more grounded way of looking at it: The alternative universe is merely the infinite range of possibilities and potentialities arising out of this present moment. And this moment right now is our last opportunity to influence what happens next.

For example, in this moment you can choose to walk right or left, and that seemingly small decision changes everything: What you'll see, whom you'll encounter, what thoughts will arise, what options you'll have, what options you'll forfeit. Figuratively and literally, a universe of possible outcomes emerges, and the only time in which we can influence events is the current moment.

Talking about such things as a "tactical mindset" might be more welcome to the Western mind than considering an alternate universe, however, during an actual emergency,
any
mindset is itself out of the moment. There's no benefit to anything being
set
, least of all the mind.

When not present in the Now, you become aware of events and options after they occur, after they are no longer possibilities or opportunities -- and for our purposes as protectors, that's too late.

When we really land in the present moment, that is where options are revealed; that is when we're propelled far ahead of unworthy adversaries. And sometimes, there, we get a tactical inspiration that doesn't come from thinking. It comes from really being in the event as it is still occurring. In effect, the Now is a door to the universe of possible outcomes -- and we are truly protectors only when that door is kept open.

[?] Stress inoculation is a complex topic which we are only briefly touching on here. Readers will benefit from the far more thorough exploration available in two excellent books: Lt. Col. Dave Grossman's book
On Combat,
and Bruce Siddle's
Sharpening the Warriors Edge.

+ Consider reading An Assasin's Diary, Arthur Bremer, 1972; it contains many observations useful to protectors.

"I am, at the very most, 35 feet from my target. In the 5th row. Too far to risk. Need a sure shot. Can't kill Nixy-boy if you ain't close to him."

Arthur Bremer, shooter of presidential candidate George Wallace

Essential Lessons of this Chapter:

Every location contains inherent advantages and disadvantages; whatever hand you are dealt can be improved by advance work, set-up, and positioning.

For most types of attack, 25-feet of space between attacker and target just about assures the protectee's survival.

In team sports, the game is primarily about moving objects through space. Similarly, most attacks on protected persons are about moving objects through space -- but the objects are usually bullets.

In football, baseball, hockey, basketball, rugby, and soccer, the whole team seeks to prevent an individual from reaching a goal. Even though many team members might be involved in the overall effort, there are times in every game when it comes down to one person charging through or around a whole group of opponents. Those competing might be gifted and capable athletes, the teams might have trained together for years, they might be supported by a variety of advisors and coaches and technologies -- and yet still they cannot reliably prevent that one person from prevailing. Even though everyone knows the opposing team's precise intent, and everyone knows roughly what strategies they'll apply, and everyone sees it happening -- they still can't reliably stop it from happening. Take the task of interfering with a player carrying or lobbing an obvious object like a basketball, and compare it to the task of interfering with a bullet discharged from a small, concealable device. One quickly grasps just how challenging a job protectors have signed on for.